Rope products, systems, methods and applications

ABSTRACT

Embodiments of the present invention include rope products, systems, processes, and related applications as disclosed herein.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application is a non-provisional application of U.S. ProvisionalApplication No. 61/993,703, filed May 15, 2014, which is herebyincorporated by reference in its entirety.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Rope products, such as winches and slings, may have numerousapplications, and previous types of rope products are known in the art.The present invention relates generally to novel rope products, systems,processes, and related applications.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In an embodiment, the invention includes novel rope products, systems,processes, and related applications as disclosed herein. Generally, inone embodiment, the invention includes a rope system. The rope systemincludes a woven cover having at least one channel and two terminalends, and the woven cover also includes a plurality of warp threads anda plurality of weft threads and wherein the warp thread and weft threadsare interwoven together. The rope system also includes a bundle offibers that form a continuous loop, and the bundle of fibers is at leastpartially disposed within the woven cover such that a portion of thebundle of fibers extends beyond the two terminal ends of the woven coverand are exposed as loops.

In another embodiment, the invention includes a linked rope system. Thelinked rope system includes (1) a fiber material configured in a loopwith joined ends to form a first bundle of fiber in a continuous loop,wherein the first bundle of fiber is at least partially encased within afirst cover and (2) a second fiber material in a loop with joined endsto form a second bundle of fiber in a continuous loop, wherein thesecond bundle of fiber is at least partially encased within a secondcover. In addition, the first bundle of fiber and the second bundle offiber are interlinked.

In yet another embodiment, the present invention includes a method ofmaking a linked rope system. The method includes the steps of looping afirst fiber material and joining two terminal ends of the first fibermaterial to form a first bundle of fiber in a continuous loop, and atleast partially enclosing the first bundle of fiber is at leastpartially encased within a first cover. The method also includes thesteps of looping a second fiber material and joining two terminal endsof the first fiber material to form a second bundle of fiber in acontinuous loop, and at least partially enclosing the second bundle offiber is at least partially encased within a second cover. Furthermore,the method includes interlinking the first bundle of fiber that is atleast partially encased within a first cover and the second bundle offiber that is at least partially encased within a second cover.

The present invention may be better understood by reference to thedescription and figures that follow. It is to be understood that theinvention is not limited in its application to the specific details asset forth in the following description and figures. The invention iscapable of other embodiments and of being practiced or carried out invarious ways

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

A full and enabling disclosure of the present invention is set forth inthe specification, which refers to the appended figures.

FIG. 1 depicts a rope system pursuant to one embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 1A shows a cross-sectional view of the embodiment of FIG. 1 alongthe line A-A;

FIG. 2 depicts a rope system pursuant to one embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 2A shows a cross-sectional view of the embodiment of FIG. 2 alongthe line A-A;

FIG. 3 depicts a rope system pursuant to one embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 3A shows an end view of the embodiment of FIG. 3;

FIG. 4 depicts a rope system pursuant to one embodiment of the presentinvention with a partial cutaway view and with a dashed linerepresenting how a divider may be formed in some embodiments;

FIG. 4A depicts a further embodiment of the embodiment in FIG. 4 whereinan embodiment of a divider is formed; a rope system pursuant to oneembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 5 depicts a cover pursuant to one embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIGS. 5B, and 5C depicts rope systems pursuant to various embodiments ofthe present invention using the cover embodiment of FIG. 5;

FIGS. 6 and 7 depict covers pursuant to certain embodiments of thepresent invention;

FIGS. 7A, and 7B depict rope systems pursuant to embodiments of thepresent invention;

FIG. 8 depicts a rope system pursuant to one embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 8A depicts an end view of the embodiment of FIG. 8;

FIG. 9 depicts a rope system pursuant to one embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 9A depicts an end view of the embodiment of FIG. 9;

FIG. 10 depicts a rope system pursuant to one embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 10A depicts an end view of the embodiment of FIG. 10

FIGS. 11 depicts an end view of the rope system embodiment of FIG. 7B ina folded configuration;

FIG. 12 depicts an end view of the rope system embodiment of FIG. 7A ina folded configuration;

FIG. 13 depicts a rope system pursuant to one embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 13A depicts an end view of the rope system embodiment of FIG. 13 ina folded configuration;

FIGS. 14, 14A, 14B, and 14C depict embodiments of a weldable or seamedcover pursuant to embodiments of the present invention;

FIGS. 15A, 15B, and 15C depict embodiments of covers of the presentinvention having auditory and/or visual indicators of breakage;

FIG. 16 depicts a rope system pursuant to one embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 17 depicts the rope system of FIG. 16 in an additionalconfiguration;

FIG. 18 depicts a rope system pursuant to one embodiment of the presentinvention; and

FIG. 19 depicts a cover having ribs pursuant to one embodiment of thepresent invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

Reference now will be made in detail to the embodiments of theinvention, one or more examples of which are set forth below. Eachexample is provided by way of explanation of the invention, not alimitation of the invention. In fact, it will be apparent to thoseskilled in the art that various modifications and variations can be madein the present invention without departing from the scope or spirit ofthe invention. For instance, features illustrated or described as partof one embodiment, can be used on another embodiment to yield a stillfurther embodiment.

Thus, it is intended that the present invention covers suchmodifications and variations as come within the scope of the appendedclaims and their equivalents. In addition, the use of referencecharacters with the same two ending digits as other reference charactersin the present specification and drawings, without a specific discussionof such structure, is intended to represent the same or analogousstructure in different embodiments. Other objects, features and aspectsof the present invention are disclosed in or are obvious from thefollowing detailed description. It is to be understood by one ofordinary skill in the art that the present discussion is a descriptionof exemplary embodiments only, and is not intended as limiting thebroader aspects of the present invention.

The present invention includes rope systems. In some embodiments, suchrope systems may include a bundle of fibers displaced, partially orfully, within a cover. By way of example and with reference to anillustrative embodiment, FIG. 1 shows rope system 100. Rope system 100includes a cover 102, which is shown as a woven tubular cover having twoopen longitudinal ends, and fiber bundle 104. As shown, fiber bundle 104is comprised of fibers that are continuously wrapped in a loop and theneach end of the fibers are joined by a knot (not shown). In this regard,the fibers are a single length and the knot serves as the onlyconnection point. FIG. 1A shows a cross-section of the embodiment ofFIG. 1 along the line A-A. As shown, fiber bundle 104 extends beyondeach longitudinal end of cover 102 to form loops 105. In this depictedembodiment, fiber bundle 104 may be formed and then inserted into cover102. In other embodiments, cover 102 may be woven around fiber bundle104 or, prior to being formed in a tubular shape, cover 102 may bewrapped around fiber bundle 104 and then sealed to form a tubular shapearound cover 102. In other embodiments, fiber bundle 104 may be formedby looping fiber bundle 104 within an already-formed cover 102. In stillother embodiments, cover 102 may have an alternative shape, such as aflat shape or a square shape.

In another exemplary embodiment, as shown in FIG. 2 (with a partialcutaway view), rope system 200 includes cover 202, wherein cover 202 isa tube-in-a-tube design having an outer cover 202′ and an inner cover202″. FIG. 2A shows a cross-section of the embodiment of FIG. 2 alongthe lines A-A. As shown, fiber bundle 204 form loops 204′ and 204″.

In still another embodiment, as shown in FIG. 3, rope system 300includes divider 306 disposed within inner cover 302″, such that twochannels are formed within inner cover 302″. As shown, divider iscentrally located within inner cover 302, but in other embodiments itmay be placed at alternative locations within inner cover 302″. Fiberbundle 304 is disposed around divider 306. FIG. 3A shows a cross-sectionof the embodiment of FIG. 3 along the lines A-A. In this embodiment,fiber bundle may be formed by looping fibers inside inner cover 302″ andaround divider 306, and then tying the ends of the fibers with a knot.As shown in FIGS. 3 and 3A, divider 306 is a separate piece of materialjoined into 302 to form divider 306. In alternative embodiments, adivider may be formed by joining portions of the inside cover 402″together, such as by weaving, sewing, or otherwise. For example, asshown in FIGS. 4 and 4A, cover 400 may have portions of its inner cover402″ joined together (such as joining the points indicated by the dashedline in FIG. 4A) to form a divider.

By further way of example, in still other embodiments, a divider may beformed by joining separate covers together, such as by weaving orsewing, such that the two joined covers join to form a single coverhaving two channels separated by a divider, such as shown in FIG. 5,which is an end view of such an illustrative embodiment. In suchembodiments, a fiber bundle may be looped continuously through eachchannel (such as shown schematically in FIG. 5B) or each channel maycontain its own continuously-looped fiber bundle (such as shownschematically in FIG. 5C). In similar fashion, any suitable form ofdivider discussed herein may also be present in the embodiment shown inFIG. 1 or in other embodiments.

In some embodiments, multiple dividers may be present. By way ofexample, as shown in FIG. 6, which is an end view of an illustrativecover that may be used in connections with rope system embodiments ofthe present invention, two dividers may be present such that threechannels are formed. As noted above with regard to FIGS. 5B and 5C, afiber bundle may continuously loop in one channel or may continuouslyextend through two channels or all three channels in the embodimentshown in FIG. 6. Although cover 600 is shown as a single-layer cover,alternative covers may be employed using multiple dividers, includingtube-in-tube cover configurations. Similarly, the dividers in theembodiment of FIG. 6 are exemplary and any type of divider may beemployed. In other embodiments, more three or more dividers may beincluded. As shown in FIG. 7, which is an end view of an exemplarycover, three dividers may be employed, which forms four channels. Insome such embodiments, as with any embodiments described herein, eachdivided section may contain a fiber bundle as shown in FIG. 7A or,alternatively, a fiber bundle may be looped around a divider as shown inFIG. 7B (wherein the B suffix added to the reference numerals is merelyto differentiate FIG. 7A).

In some embodiments, such as shown in FIGS. 8 and 8A, fiber bundle 804may be surrounded by a separate cover 803 that is displaced within, butnot adjoined to, cover 802. In still other embodiments, multipleseparate covers may be used as shown in FIG. 9. In such embodiments, afiber bundle may be contained within a single separate cover as shown inFIGS. 9 and 9A or may be looped between two or more separate covers asshown in FIGS. 10 and 10A. In still other embodiments, separate covers803 and 903 may optionally have a divider therein, wherein a fiberbundle may be continuously looped in a single channel therein or betweenone or more channels therein. In some embodiments, the separate cover,such as separate cover 803, may be waterproof or water resistant, andanother cover, such as cover 802, may be abrasion resistant.

In some embodiments, a rope system may be folded into a more compactform. By way of example, FIG. 11 shows rope system 700B of FIG. 7B,which illustrated a cover 702B having three dividers 706B such thatthere were four channels. As shown in FIG. 11, folding rope system 700Bover in the latitudinal direction results in the embodiment shown in theend view of FIG. 11. In similar fashion, the embodiment of FIG. 7A maybe folded to form the folded embodiment shown in the end view depictionof FIG. 12. Finally, in another exemplary embodiment, a rope system mayhave the configuration shown in FIG. 13 and may be folded as shown inthe end view of FIG. 13A. In other embodiments, additional dividers andchannels may be present, and folding may be accomplished to form anaccordion-like folded rope system.

In some embodiments, a cover may extend along the entire length orsubstantially the entire length of a winch or rope system. In otherembodiments, a cover may extend to or slightly beyond any hardware at anend of the rope system. As shown in the foregoing illustrativeembodiments, a cover may extend over an entire fiber bundle except forthe loops of the fiber bundle that extend from each longitudinal end ofa cover. In some embodiments, the cover may alternatively extendsubstantially over the entire fiber bundle except the loops. In otherembodiments, a cover may also extend over the loops. In still otherembodiments, a cover may surround the loops and have an open portion onthe interior of the loop, in which case hardware may still be readilyattached within the open portion.

In the embodiments discussed above, each fiber bundle is formed bycontinuously wrapping one or more continuous fibers and then joining thefree ends. In some embodiments, such free ends of the fiber bundle maybe joined by a knot. In other embodiments of the illustrativeembodiments herein, such free ends of a fiber bundle may be taped,glued, or joined using any other suitable methods. In some embodiments,the free ends of a fiber bundle ends are not sewn, spliced, clipped, orclamped. Furthermore, a space or gap may exist between the inside of acover and the fiber bundle, such as shown, by example, in FIG. 1A.

Covers used in the present invention may be comprised of any suitablematerial for a particular embodiment. For example, in some embodiments,the fibers of a woven cover may comprise any suitable natural orsynthetic material known in the art or combinations thereof. In someembodiments, the fibers comprise meta-, para-aramid fibers, para-aramidfibers, meta-aramid fibers, cotton, rayon, Teflon®-coated fibers, shapedfibers, glass fibers, basalt fibers, carbon fibers, high moduluspolyethylene fibers, liquid crystal polymer fibers, hollow fibers,nylon, polyesters, polypropylene, polyethylene, polyphenylene sulfide,polyetheretherketone, polyolefins, high modulus polyethylene (HMPE),amide polymers or copolymers, other aramids, metal yarns, other suitablematerials, and combinations thereof. According to some embodiments, suchfibers may be heat-shrinkable or have elasticity. By way of example, andwithout limitation, in some embodiments a cover may include nylon andpolyester fibers. In some embodiments, any materials noted herein for acover may be used for a fiber bundle and any materials noted for a fiberbundle may be used for a cover and vice versa. In addition, anymaterials used for a cover or a bundle of fibers may be treated orcoated to improve the properties of the material for a particularapplication.

In some embodiments, materials included in a cover may have one or moreof high tensile strength, high thermal resistance, high abrasionresistance, low shrinkage at high temperatures, high fatigue resistance,ultraviolet radiation resistance, high chemical and heat stability, andlow moisture regain. In some embodiments, spun or texturized fibers oryarns may be used to limit abrasion. Also, the fibers may be coated withpolymers, paraffin waxes, non-paraffin waxes, and/or other substances toimprove abrasion, ultraviolet resistance, water and chemical resistance,improve moisture wicking, provide improved heat transfer, fireresistance, and other desirable properties for a particular embodiment.

In some embodiments, a cover used in embodiments of the presentinvention may be a woven webbing. The term “woven”, as used herein,means interlacing individual fibers in a regular order. Any method ofweaving known in the art may be utilized in this invention. Similarly,any weave pattern known in the art may be utilized in the webbingincluding, but not limited to, a plain weave, a twill weave, a satinweave, a tabby weave, a taffeta weave, a matt weave, a basket weave, arib weave, computer-generated interlacings, and combinations thereof.The fibers of a cover may have any configuration known in the art. Forexample, the configuration of the fibers may be circular, ovular,elliptical, or flat. Additional configurations of woven material areincluded in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/078,211, which ispublished as U.S. Published Patent Application No. 2014/178,615 andwhich is incorporated herein in its entirety by reference. In someembodiments, covers may have a construction and/or composition otherthan a woven construction, such as a film cover, coated fabrics, orcombinations of different constructions.

In addition, in some embodiments, covers of the present invention mayinclude one or more spaced longitudinal ribs, such as shown, by way ofexample, in FIG. 19. Such ribs, which may have increased longitudinalstiffness, may be spaced equidistantly from one another or may be spacedintermittently. In some embodiments, the ribs may comprise a woven rope.The ribs may be formed from any suitable material, including materialsdisclosed to form a cover or a bundle of fibers herein. In someembodiments, ribs may be woven into a cover, whereas in otherembodiments they may be attached by any conventional manner. Theprojection height of the ribs can vary, but may be, in an embodiment,greater than the thickness of the cover. In some embodiments, theprojection height may be 5% to 200% greater than the thickness of thecover, including each intermittent value therein. In some embodiments,the projection height may be at least 5% greater than the thickness ofthe cover. In another embodiment, the projection height 56 for the ribsmay be at least 10% greater than the thickness of the cover. In anotherembodiment, the projection height of the ribs may be at least 20%greater than the thickness of the cover. In yet another embodiment, theprojection height may be up to 50% greater than the thickness of thecover and, in still another embodiment, the projection height may be100% greater than the thickness of the cover. Additional configurationsof ribbed covers are disclosed in U.S. patent application Ser. No.14/204,758, which is published as U.S. Published Patent Application No.2014/311,611 and which is incorporated herein in its entirety byreference.

By way of example, and without limitation, covers in some embodiments ofthe present invention may include warp yarns and weft yarns having anysuitable denier for a particular application. For example, in someembodiments, warp yarns in the range of about 840 denier to about 2,700denier may be used. In some embodiments, warp yarns having greater than2700 denier may be employed, such as in the range of about 2,700 denierto about 5,000 denier. In some embodiments, warp yarns having less than3,000 denier may be used. In some embodiments fill (or weft) yarn havinga denier in the range of about 500 denier to about 1,000 denier may beused. With the foregoing exemplary ranges each intermittent value isspecifically included.

For embodiments employing a woven cover, any suitable weaving parametersmay be employed. By way of example, a cover may have a tight plainweave, such as in the range of about 4.75 picks per inch to about 50picks per inch, including each intermittent value therein. In someembodiments, a woven cover may have a pick count of at least about 17.5picks per inch. In some embodiments, a woven cover may have a plainweave of about 2.5 to about 7.5 picks per inch, including eachintermittent value therein. In other embodiments, an outer sleeve mayhave a pick count of at least about 12.5 picks per inch. In someembodiments, a cover may include an inner cover and an outer cover aspreviously described, wherein an inner and outer cover may have the samewoven configuration or differing woven configurations. For example, insome embodiments an inner cover may have a plain weave configuration andan outer cover may have either a twill weave or a plain weaveconfiguration. For reference, a plain weave may also be referred to as abasket weave.

In still other embodiments, covers may include non-woven material thatis sewn or otherwise connected in a tubular shape. For example, in someembodiments, covers may be sewn, bonded, or otherwise prepared using thesame materials as discussed for woven constructions or alternativematerials. By way of example, in some embodiments, a cover may be formedusing weldable materials, By way of example, a cover of some embodimentsmay be formed by coating a webbing material, film, fabric, or othermaterial (which may be, by way of example, woven, spun bond nonwoven,nonwoven laminates, films, perforated films, or combinations thereof)with a weldable plastic, such as, for example, polyvinyl chloride orpolyurethane. In such weldable embodiments, any suitable weldablematerials may be employed, such as films, fibers, or nonwovens coated oruncoated so long as the material can be joined by heat, ultrasonic,radio frequency, welding, or the like.

By way of example, a rope system with a weldable cover may be formed asshown in the illustrative embodiment of FIG. 14. As shown, material1401, which has longitudinal edges 1401′, may be laid flat, as shown inFIG. 14, and then it may be folded by joining longitudinal edges 1401′to form a tubular shape, such as that shown in FIG. 14A. Longitudinaledges 1401′ may be welded to form a seam. Any suitable seam may be used,such as those shown in FIGS. 14B and 14C, which illustrate exemplaryalternative welded seams 1408′ and 1408″ from an end view of a tubularcover. In some embodiments, a hook and loop fastener or similar meansmay be used to join longitudinal edges of a cover. Such welded coversmay be used in the manner described herein for any embodiment as a coverfor one or more fiber bundles. In addition, such covers with fibersbundle may be used, for example, as a winch rope or, after joining theends of the tubular cover by any suitable joinder, such as by welding,sewing, heat, ultrasonic, radio frequency, or in any other suitablemanner.

In some embodiments, and as illustrated in FIGS. 15A, 15B, and 15C,embodiments of the present invention may include auditory and/or visualindicators of breakage prior to a complete break of the rope system. Byway of example, covers made of woven material may be used in certainembodiments of the present invention as described above. Such wovencovers may include both warp yarns and weft yarns. As provided in someembodiments of the present invention, these materials may provide thewarnings necessary for use in embodiments of the present invention. Forexample, although most ropes are given maximum load requirements, thewarp yarns and/or weft yarns may include maximum load weights that areless than the total breaking weight of the entire cover or fiber bundleof a rope system or that are less than the maximum load weight of theentire rope system. For example, in some embodiments, some or all warpyarns and/or weft yarns in a rope may have maximum load weights that arebetween about 20 and about 80% of the total breaking weight of theentire rope system. In other embodiments, warp yarns and/or weft yarnsmay include maximum load weights of between about 40 and 60% of thetotal breaking weight of the entire rope system. In such instances, asthe maximum weight is approached, the warp yarns and/or weft yarns willstart to break, thereby providing a user with visual and auditorywarnings of approaching breakage.

As shown in FIG. 15A, an exemplary woven rope includes warp yarns 1502and weft yarns 1504. As shown, FIG. 15B, the rope is subjected tostrain, and some of the weft yarns 1504 begin to break as shown bybroken weft yarns 1504′. in this manner, broken weft yarns 104′ mayprovide an iodination that the total breaking weight of the entire ropeis being neared or that a certain threshold of strain or stress has beenmet. As shown in FIG. 15C, the exemplary rope has undergone additionalstress and some of the warp yarns 1502 have broken as shown by brokenwarp yarns 1502′. These broken warp yarns 1502′ may provide anadditional indication of a certain threshold being met or neared for theentire rope.

In some embodiments, additional materials, such as a distinct weftstrand or a distinct warp strand of a different material than the otherweft and/or warp strands, may be incorporated into a rope to provide anindication of a threshold being met or neared. For example, in oneembodiment, such distinct weft strands or a distinct warp strands may beof a weaker material than the remaining weft or warp strands of therope, such that when the weaker distinct weft strand and/or distinctwarp strands are broken an indication is provided. In still otherembodiments, an additional material, such as a yarn that does nototherwise serve as a weft strand or warp strand, may be incorporatedinto a rope to provide an indication of a threshold being met or neared.

In addition, to provide even greater indications of breakage, some orall weft yarns and warp yarns may be of various colors such that a usermay determine when a particular breaking point is reached or is beingreached. For example, in some embodiments, some weft yarns may be of adifferent color, for example red, than the other materials, such aswhite, utilized in the rope construction. As load conditions are beingreached, those red weft yarns, optionally selected to break before theentire rope system reaches a maximum breaking weight, will start tobreak and will thereby provide the user with a clear indication ofpossible breakage.

With regard to fiber bundles employed in embodiments of the presentinvention, such fiber bundles may include any suitable fibers or anyother material suitable for a particular embodiment. By way of example,such fibers and materials may include, without limitation, polyester,nylon, meta- para-aramid fibers, para-aramid fibers, meta-aramid fibers,cotton, rayon, Teflon®-coated fibers, shaped fibers, glass fibers,basalt fibers, carbon fibers, high modulus polyethylene fibers, liquidcrystal polymer fibers (such as, by way of example, those available fromVectran Fiber, Inc.), hollow fibers, polypropylene, polyethylene,polyphenylene sulfide, polyetheretherketone, polyolefins, high moduluspolypropylene, amide polymers or copolymers, other polyolefins, otheraramids, metal yarns, other suitable materials, and combinationsthereof. In addition, by way of example, the fiber bundle may have anysuitable structure, such as, without limitation, twisted or untwistedcontinuous filaments, parallel strands, filament bundles comprised ofmono-filament yarns, filament bundles comprised of films, twisted rope,braided rope (including, without limitation, solid braided rope andhollow braided rope), liquid crystal polymer rope, woven rope,kernmantle rope, woven ropes with components that may be twisted orbraided, braided or twisted ropes using components that are woven or ofanother format, and combinations thereof. By way of example, and withoutlimitation, such fibers in some embodiments may include twisted, cabled,braided, or woven yarns, or combinations thereof. In some embodiments,spun or texturized fibers or yarns may be used to limit abrasion.According to some embodiments, such fibers may be heat-shrinkable orhave elasticity. Also, the fibers may be coated with or otherwiseinclude, such as by using nano-coatings through vapor deposition orother suitable means, with polymers, paraffin waxes, non-paraffin waxes,and/or other substances to improve abrasion, ultraviolet resistance,water and chemical resistance, improve moisture wicking, provideimproved heat transfer, fire resistance, and other desirable propertiesfor a particular embodiment. In addition, such materials and/oralternative materials may be used in other non-woven covers that arealso within the scope of the present invention.

Any size of fibers may be used as is suitable for a particularembodiment. Furthermore, any fibers employed may be monofilament,multifilament, or tapes. In addition, the size of the bundles shown inthe figures herein are exemplary and are not limiting. The fiber withina bundle may also be more tightly packed within a bundle than shown inthe depicted embodiment, as well as bound, joined, braided twisted, orotherwise connected if desired. In other embodiments, smaller or largerbundles may be employed. In addition, in some embodiments, multiplebundles may be employed within a single cover and, in some embodiments,even within a single channel within a cover.

Any suitable denier of fiber may be used. In one embodiment, the fibersof the woven rope may be in the range of about 10,000 denier to about100,000 denier, including each intermittent value therein. In someembodiments, fibers may have a denier of or greater than about 10,000denier. In still other embodiments, fibers of or less than about 100,000denier may be employed.

Fiber bundles may be wrapped as many times as suitable for anyparticular embodiment or application. A predetermined length of fibermay be selected based on the ultimate number of wrappings desired andthe desired length of the rope system. In some embodiments, an increasednumber of wrappings may reduce the impact on the connection of the endsof the fiber bundle, such as any impact (such as from tension) at a knotjoining the free ends of a fiber bundle. In addition, although ends of afiber bundle are joined as a knot in the embodiments described above,other suitable connections may be used such as taping, gluing, airsplicing, and other suitable connections. In some embodiments, the knotor other connection may be disposed within a cover of a rope system.

In some embodiments, a fiber bundle may include a fiber optic cable, asensor wire, and/or other materials, such as for load or temperaturesensing. Such materials may be included within a fiber bundle asdescribed above or may be included as a separate fiber bundle.

In some particular embodiments, rope systems of the present inventionmay be used as a winch rope. In such embodiments, such as shown in FIG.16, fiber bundle 1604 is surrounded by cover 1602 except for loops 1605that extend from cover 1602. Thimble 1615 may be included on one loop1605 for use in winch applications or other applications. The depictedthimble is exemplary for one embodiment, but any suitable thimble orother hardware may be used, In some embodiments, each loop of thatembodiment may include a thimble or other suitable hardware. A metalhook may optionally be attached to one or both ends, either to the fiberbundle loop directly or to a thimble thereon. In some embodiments, oneloop at a longitudinal end of the rope system may be attached directlyto a winch drum. Winch rope system embodiments may be prepared from anyof the embodiments discussed herein.

In other embodiments, rope systems of the present invention may be usedto form or function as a round sling. Round sling embodiments may beprepared from any of the embodiments discussed herein. Such slings maybe used to harness or support heavy objects in applications such as, forexample, aircraft, rigging, engine, shipbuilding, or other industrial orconstruction-related tools and parts. In some embodiments, a bundle offibers may be continuously wound and then partially or wholly encasedwithin a cover, such as by forming or joining a cover around the bundleof fibers. By way of example, and with reference to FIG. 17, loops 1705of rope system 1700 may be joined together such that the rope systemforms a round sling. Any suitable hardware may be used to join loopstogether to form a round sling, such as metal shackle 1716 shown forexemplary purposes in FIG. 17. In addition, cover 1702 may surround allor a portion of fiber bundles 1704. In some embodiments, cover 1702 maysurround all of fiber bundles 1705 except for loops 1705. In still otherembodiments, cover 1702 may not cover loops 1705, but after joiningloops 1705 together to form a round sling, then cover 1702 may beextended to cover a portion or all of the loops, including or excludingany hardware. In such embodiments, a terminal end at each end of cover1702 may be connected or joined together to form a continuous cover.Such connection may be done by any suitable means, including fasteners.In some embodiments, such round slings may be joined and connected tocreate a chain or linked rope system as described below.

In other embodiments, the present invention further includes a chain orlinked rope system. Such linked rope systems may include a plurality ofa bundle of fibers in a continuous loop, optionally encased wholly orpartially within a cover, interlinked with other bundles of fiber formedin a continuous loop and also optionally encased wholly or partiallywithin a cover. By way of example, FIG. 18 shows a linked rope system1800. As shown, a bundle fibers 1804 (shown in a partial cutaway view)is encased within a cover 1802, and such a fiber bundle is present(although not shown) within each depicted cover 1802, which has two endsjoined by seam S to form a continuous circular cover. The cover andencased bundle of fibers are interlinked with one or more other coversand encased bundle of fibers as depicted.

Linked rope systems of the present invention may be formed using anysuitable procedure for a particular application. For example, as shownwith reference to FIG. 18, the bundle of fibers are formed into acontinuous loop of fibers by looping a fiber material through an opencover, such as a cover having to open ends (as shown in FIG. 18 for onecover 1804), and then joining two free ends of the fiber material toform a bundle of fibers in a continuous loop. A seam, such as seam S inFIG. 18, may then be formed to join the ends of a cover together to forma circular cover that fully encases the bundle of fibers within thatcover. In other embodiments, a bundle of fibers comprising a continuousloop of fibers may be formed and then a cover may be formed or wrappedaround that already-formed bundle of fibers, such as by wrappingmaterial to form a cover around the already-formed continuous loop of abundle of fibers and then sewing a seam to form the cover in a mannersimilar to that shown in FIGS. 14-14C. In still other embodiments, roundsling embodiments of the type previously described above with respect toFIG. 17, may be used, wherein loops of a bundle of fibers may be joined,such as by using any suitable hardware, including pins, shackles,thimbles, hooks, and the like made from appropriate materials for aparticular application, such as stainless steel, steel, plastic, orcomposites, to form a link. A plurality of such links may be joined toform a linked rope system. In addition, in some embodiments, links maybe connected to other links using hardware or by tying or sewing, asopposed to interlinking. As noted, in some such embodiments, a cover maybe extended to cover the entire underlying bundle of fibers afterconnecting the loops of the bundle of fibers. Although the foregoingembodiments are illustrative, in other embodiments a linked rope systemmay include a plurality of bundles of fibers are interlinked and whereinsome or all of the bundle of fibers do not include a cover.

Rope systems of the present invention may be used for any other suitablepurpose, such as other types of slings, harnesses, and ropes. Althoughparticular embodiments of the invention have been described usingspecific terms, devices, and methods, such description is forillustrative purposes only. The words used are words of descriptionrather than of limitation. It is to be understood that changes andvariations may be made by those of ordinary skill in the art withoutdeparting from the spirit or the scope of the present invention, whichis set forth in the following claims. In addition, it should beunderstood that aspects of the various embodiments may be interchangedin whole or in part. Therefore, the spirit and scope of the appendedclaims should not be limited to the description of the preferredversions contained therein.

What is claimed is:
 1. A rope system comprising: a cover having at leastone channel and two terminal ends; and a bundle of fibers that form acontinuous loop, wherein the bundle of fibers is at least partiallydisposed within the cover and wherein a portion of the bundle of fibersextends beyond the two terminal ends of the cover and are exposed asloops.
 2. The rope system of claim 1 wherein the bundle of fibercomprise a length of material formed in a loop and having two terminalends of the material joined together to form the continuous loop.
 3. Therope system of claim 1 wherein the cover is a woven cover comprising aplurality of warp threads and a plurality of weft threads and whereinthe warp thread and weft threads are interwoven together.
 4. The ropesystem of claim 1 wherein the cover is comprised of meta-, para-aramidfibers, para-aramid fibers, meta-aramid fibers, cotton, rayon,Teflon®-coated fibers, shaped fibers, glass fibers, basalt fibers,carbon fibers, high modulus polyethylene fibers, liquid crystal polymerfibers, hollow fibers, nylon, polyesters, polypropylene, polyethylene,polyphenylene sulfide, polyetheretherketone, polyolefins, high moduluspolyethylene (HMPE), amide polymers or copolymers, other aramids, othersuitable materials, and combinations thereof.
 5. The rope system ofclaim 4 wherein one or more of the warp threads and weft threadscomprise polymers, paraffin waxes, non-paraffin waxes, or combinationsthereof.
 6. The rope system of claim 1 wherein the bundle of fibers arecomprised of polyester, nylon, meta- para-aramid fibers, para-aramidfibers, meta-aramid fibers, cotton, rayon, Teflon®-coated fibers, shapedfibers, glass fibers, basalt fibers, carbon fibers, high moduluspolyethylene fibers, liquid crystal polymer fibers, hollow fibers,polypropylene, polyethylene, polyphenylene sulfide,polyetheretherketone, polyolefins, high modulus polypropylene, amidepolymers or copolymers, other polyolefins, other aramids, andcombinations thereof.
 7. The rope system of claim 1 wherein the bundleof fibers comprises one or more of the structures selected from thegroup comprising twisted continuous filaments, untwisted continuousfilaments, parallel strands, filament bundles comprised of mono-filamentyarns, filament bundles comprised of films, twisted rope, braided rope,woven rope, kernmantle rope, woven ropes with twisted or braidedcomponents, braided or twisted ropes with woven components, andcombinations thereof.
 8. The rope system of claim 6 wherein at least aportion of the bundle of fibers is coated with polymers, paraffin waxes,non-paraffin waxes, or combinations thereof.
 9. The rope system of claim1 wherein the cover comprises and inner cover and an outer cover. 10.The rope system of claim 1 wherein the cover comprises a divider. 11.The rope system of claim 10 wherein the bundle of fibers that form acontinuous loop are disposed around the divider.
 12. The rope system ofclaim 10 wherein a bundle of fibers is disposed on each side of thedivider.
 13. The rope system of claim 1 wherein the cover comprises aplurality of dividers and a plurality of channels.
 14. The rope systemof claim 13 wherein the cover comprises three or more channels and abundle of fibers is at least partially disposed in at least threechannels of the cover.
 15. The rope system of claim 10 wherein the coverencases at least a portion of a plurality of bundles of fibers.
 16. Therope system of claim 15 wherein at least more than one of the bundle offibers is at least partially disposed within the cover and extendsbeyond the two terminal ends of the cover and are exposed as loops. 17.The rope system of claim 1 further comprising a joining componentconfigured to connect the loops of the bundle of fibers that areexposed.
 18. The rope system of claim 17 wherein a plurality of ropesystems are interlaced to form a linked rope system.
 19. The rope systemof claim 17 wherein the terminal ends of the cover are adjoined toentirely encase the bundle of fibers.
 20. The rope system of claim 1wherein the cover is at least partially disposed within a second coverand wherein the cover and the second cover are unattached.
 21. The ropesystem of claim 1 wherein the cover is configured to have one or moreproperties selected from the group consisting of high tensile strength,high thermal resistance, high abrasion resistance, low shrinkage at hightemperatures, high fatigue resistance, ultraviolet radiation resistance,high chemical and heat stability, and low moisture regain.
 22. The ropesystem of claim 1 wherein the cover is configured to provide an alert asa total breaking weight of t is approached, wherein the cover comprisesindicator yarns displaced within the cover, wherein the indicator yarnshave maximum load weights that are less than the total breaking weightof the entire rope.
 23. A linked rope system comprising: a fibermaterial configured in a loop with joined ends to form a first bundle offiber in a continuous loop, wherein the first bundle of fiber is atleast partially encased within a first cover; a second fiber material ina loop with joined ends to form a second bundle of fiber in a continuousloop, wherein the second bundle of fiber is at least partially encasedwithin a second cover; wherein the first bundle of fiber and the secondbundle of fiber are interlinked.
 24. The linked rope system of claim 23wherein the second fiber material is selected from the group consistingof a fiber material having the same composition as the first fibermaterial and a fiber material having a distinct composition from thefirst fiber material.
 25. The linked rope system of claim 23 wherein thefirst bundle of fiber is entirely encased within a first cove and thesecond bundle of fiber is entirely encased within a second cover.
 26. Amethod of making a linked rope system, the method comprising: looping afirst fiber material and joining two terminal ends of the first fibermaterial to form a first bundle of fiber in a continuous loop, at leastpartially enclosing the first bundle of fiber is at least partiallyencased within a first cover; looping a second fiber material andjoining two terminal ends of the first fiber material to form a secondbundle of fiber in a continuous loop, at least partially enclosing thesecond bundle of fiber is at least partially encased within a secondcover; interlinking the first bundle of fiber that is at least partiallyencased within a first cover and the second bundle of fiber that is atleast partially encased within a second cover.
 27. The method of claim26 wherein the first fiber material is looped through the first coverwherein the first cover has two open terminal ends, and joining the twoterminal ends of the first cover together after the two terminal ends ofthe first fiber material are joined, and wherein the second fibermaterial is looped through the second cover wherein the second cover hastwo open terminal ends and wherein the second fiber material is alsolooped through the interior of the loop formed by the first bundle offiber that is at least partially encased within a first cover, andjoining the two terminal ends of the second cover together after the twoterminal ends of the second fiber material are joined.